Winged
by avolowolf11CC
Summary: The next step of cat evolution is here. The question is, are the Clans ready for Rainbowflight?
1. Prologue

Prologue

Widewings snuggled closer to Brambleheart. He purred lovingly and nestled his head on her back, between her broad wings.

As far as Widewings knew, she was the only cat ever born with wings. Her mother had called her "special." Her father had called her "different." Her brothers had called her "deformed," and "wrong," and then would bully her while their mother was not looking, then say that the wounds on Widekit's big wings were accidents, that her wings got in the way of their playing. Widekit dared not fight back, for fear of what they would do to her if she did.

Brambleheart was the only one who had ever truly accepted her for who she was. She loved him with all her heart. He gently ran his tail over her swollen belly, and she purred and licked his cheek.

Widewings hoped that none of the tiny kits squirming inside her would share the same horrible fate as her. SkyClan, her lifelong family and home, had driven her out, and Brambleheart had come with her. They were trying to reach the legendary lands of the Clans, ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan, hoping to gain acceptance there.

"When do you think we will reach them?" Widewings asked. They were lying under a bush, waiting for sleep to come.

"The legends say that Firestar and Sandstorm came from farther upriver," he replied, looking doubtful.

"I guess we'll just decide in the morning," she mumbled tiredly, her eyelids drooping.

Suddenly, she gasped. Painful ripples were ripping down her flank.

"Kits!" she screeched, claws digging into the ground, wings flailing wildly.

"W-what?!" Brambleheart yelped, looking around frantically.

"Aren't you the medicine cat apprentice, mousebrain?! I'M HAVING KITS! GET THE DAMN HERBS!" she wailed, swatting him in the face with her tail.

"R-right, herbs! What herbs?!" he moaned, looking terrified.

"I DON'T KNOW! I'M NOT A MEDECINE CAT!" Widewings shrieked. "SURELY YOU KNOW THIS!"

"Oh, yeah! Yeah! Uh... RASPBERRY LEAVES! Right! Ooo, and a stick, and some wet moss, maybe-"

"GO GET THE DAMN- AAAAARRRRRGH!" she yowled hoarsely as the worst pang yet crashed through her body. Brambleheart dashed off without another word.

Seven shattered sticks and a dozen bleeding claw marks later, a tiny she-kit lay cuddled up to Widewings' warm belly, suckling peacefully.

Widewings' expression, on the other paw, was anything but peaceful. "Oh, no..." she murmured sadly.

The newborn kit was even stranger looking than Widewings. Her fur was pale orange, not ginger, but true orange, with _purple_ stripes. Well, occasionally, that is. Every bit of the tiny kit was flashing random colours and patterns, ranging from regular brown-and-grey tabby to neon green to glow-in-the-dark. Hell, sometimes she even had emhorns/em. Of course, to add insult to injury, she also sported a pair of wings, the feathers flashing different hues as well. The newborn kit's claws, which were randomly sheathing and unsheathing, were as long as an eagle's talons. A baby eagle, that is. But still an eagle. Gradually, the flashing colours settled into the orange-and-purple tabby, with a sharp blue muzzle and chest, twin lightning bolt-shaped green stripes traveling from the base of her ears to just in front of her forelegs, on either side of her body. Her right paw was the same bright green, her tail ending in a tuft like a lion's tail. The sharp horns slipped into her forehead like sheathed claws, ready to pop out again at a moment's notice. Her feathery wings relaxed into rainbow feathers, each plume a different color of the rainbow.

Widewings sighed. "My poor, poor baby. I wish-"

"Widewings, no," Brambleheart said firmly. "This- our kit is beautiful. She's stronger than other cats, I can see that already, and did you _see_ those _claws_?! This cat is destined for greatness. She'll be a great hunter, she can camouflage her own fur, and I have a feeling she'll be great at jumping. With those claws and wings working together, the horns, too, she could take down any warrior I've ever met easily. If she's anything like you, she'll be loving and kind, fiercely determined to protect what she loves- this cat is destined for greatness." Brambleheart finished, panting slightly.

"Brambleheart..." Widewings took a deep breath. "You're right. She... Rainbowkit doesn't need pity, and I won't give her any." The new mother smiled down at her baby. "You know what?" she said abruptly, breaking the tender silence. "I'm starving. Why don't you go out and get some freshkill?"

Brambleheart smiled, then bobbed his head. "Of course." Then he turned, his dark brown tail brushing his mate's soft pink nose as he padded out of the little bush den in the middle of an unfamiliar forest.

Brambleheart never came back. Widewings never even found his body. The winged she-cat was left alone, tasked with bringing her extraordinary kit to the Clans.

And so, after a moon of careful nurturing, traveling, questioning, and finally finding, Widewings and Rainbowkit stood just outside the ThunderClan borderline, inhaling the musky scent, feeling satisfaction like no other time before.

_We made it, Brambleheart. Are you watching, from the stars?_ Widewings smiled sadly, reminiscing.

"Mama, Mama, come _on_!" Rainbowkit squealed, fluttering around her mother on powerful wings.

"Hold on, sweetie, I need to talk to you first."

Rainbowkit landed in front of her mother, looking confused. "What is it, Mama?"

"Listen, baby, I need you to listen." Widewings sighed, closing her eyes briefly. "You...you know that you and I are very special, right?"

"Of course, Mama! _Very_ special!"

"Alright, well, you are much more special than me." Rainbowkit frowned. "What do you mean?"

Widewings sighed again. "I mean that I can't go to ThunderClan with you."

"Mama! Of course you can!"

"No, baby, I can't. I can't disguise my...specialness like you can. They'd never accept me. You can make yourself look as normal as you want. I can't. I can't go with you, baby, I just can't."

Rainbowkit's wide neon yellow eyes shone with understanding and grief. "But... Mama..."

"Rainbow, baby, you know I love you more than the world, right?"

Tears spilled over onto the young kit's pale orange cheeks. "I love you too, Mommy. I understand."

Widewings smiled, crying too. She touched her baby's nose with her own. "Now go."

Rainbowkit sniffled, then her bright colours, wings, lion tail, thin ears, everything strange about her, melted away to a calm pale ginger with darker stripes and sad amber eyes. "I love you Mommy." Widewings was openly sobbing now. "Goodbye, baby."

"Goodbye."

**A/N: Awwww...! Did you like it? Should I continue? Did it punch you right in the feels? Widewings inflicts pain on others while giving birth... Good for her. Is Rainbowkit too flamboyant? I think she's pretty cool. Look out, ThunderClan, she won't stay disguised forever! Yay, bye!**


	2. Sorry about the messy prologue AN

Whoakay, sorry about thus for any of you that wanted a chapter (I'm sorry) but I needed to say something real quick. No, its not a hiatus or anything. I got a slightly confused review (thanks, Oakfall! (That wasn't sarcastic, I promise)) asking about a few things:

So I'll start with the messed-up formatting. After I read your review, I went and looked at it, and I was like holy sh*it! (If you don't like swearing, get off the internet) it _is_ messed-up! Ok, I did not do that. For some reason the website does that to me on the first two or three ish chapters of a story. I think I fixed it, if its still weird feel free to tell me. Sorry 'bout that.

Second thing, about the crappy romance at the beginning, I was like, ten when I started this story, so the crappy ten-year-old's romance is... Not my present self's fault. I didn't feel like rewriting it. Get over it.

Third, I know that Rainbowkit is impossible, right down to her name. I was originally actually going to make her totally normal, and have it be about her trying to protect her dear mother from nasty wing-hating Clan cats, then I was like, screw it. I made her as ludicrous as I could. Because what is life if you can't have a little fun now and then? About her name, this is set, like, almost a hundred years after Jayfeather, Lionblaze, and Dovewing, _and _Widewings and Brambleheart came from SkyClan. Who's to say they haven't developed a few new words in all that time?

Well, I hope it's fixed, I promise I tried, sorry about the author's note, and about... Everything else. I hope you can understand, and the next chapter WILL be better. Thanks for reading, and pull through with me!

~avolowolf11CC


	3. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A tiny, pale ginger she-kit was found lying among the roots of a great oak tree, breathing shallowly and looking exhausted. A ThunderClan dawn patrol, consisting of two warriors and two apprentices, stared wide eyed at the little kit, who was shifting in her sleep, and suddenly let out an adorable mew.

"Great StarClan, Snowfang, can we keep her?" A soft brown tabby apprentice spluttered, fawning over the little kit.

"Harepaw, _really? _Of course not! We need to find the poor thing's mother, and be done with it!" Her mentor, a large white tom named Snowfang, huffed impatiently.

"What is she doesn't have a mother? Come _on, please?_" Harepaw begged looking at her mentor with large, pleading brown eyes.

"No-no, don't do that, not the eyes, please stop, we can keep her! Just stop making that face!" Snowfang moaned closing his eyes to escape from the miserable eyes.

"Well then..." The other warrior in the patrol, Spottedheart, chuckled. "Well, pick her up then. If we're taking her back to camp, we might as well get it over with." Harepaw bobbed her head, looking pleased. She swooped down and grasped the tiny kit's scruff, then flicked her tail and padded off through the woods, towards the camp.

"Goldenstar! We found a kit!" Owlpaw, the other apprentice, squawked, dashing into camp ahead of Harepaw and Rainbowkit.

"You did, didn't you!" ThunderClan's leader, a golden tabby she-cat padded over to the patrol. Spotting the kit, her eyes widened. "Great StarClan, she's adorable!" the leader yowled, bounding over to look at Rainbowkit. "Come, come, let's take her to the medicine den!" Harepaw nodded, unable to answer because of her mouthful of kit, and followed the eccentric leader to the bramble curtain that hid the medicine den.

"Maaaaaarigoldleaf! I have a surprise for you! Mari?" The medicine cat stepped out of the bramble sheet with a huff. "Goldenstar, how many times have I told you not to call me- You- Whose kit is that?!" she yelped. Goldenstar shrugged. "The dawn patrol found her, isn't she just the cutest?"

Marigoldleaf sighed. "Sure, I guess. Bring her inside, I'll check on her. Goldenstar and Harepaw scampered inside, the apprentice still clutching Rainbowkit between her jaws.

As Harepaw laid the pale ginger tabby kit on the ground, her eyes shot open, revealing gorgeous dark amber eyes that seemed to briefly flash a different, brighter shade of yellow before darkening, fast enough for Marigoldleaf to blame it on a trick of the light. Goldenstar squealed, and fell over with a yelp of, "Adorable!" She scrambled back to her feet and studies the kit.

"Hey there, little kit! How are you feeling?" Rainbowkit blinked a few times, registering her surroundings. "I-I'm alright a guess... Is this ThunderClan?"

Goldenstar looked surprised. "Yes, actually. Have you heard of our mighty greatness and come to see it for yourself?" Goldenstar asked, puffing out her chest. "Yes, I suppose," the little kit mewed, surprising everyone.

Marigoldleaf blinked. "How old are you, dear?"

Rainbowkit frowned, thinking. "Um... One moon I think?" She replied, looking unsure.

"Oh, my dear, where is your mother? A kit as young as you shouldn't be wandering around alone!" Goldenstar meowed, aghast.

Rainbowkit shrugged. "I don't know." She didn't offer any more explanation.

"Well, we have a few nursing queens right now, yes? You can join one of their litters!" Harepaw cried.

"Um... Sure, I guess." Rainbowkit smiled. Goldenstar sighed. I _want her..._ She thought sadly.

"Alright, well, Thrushflower's kits are about as old as you, you can join her litter," Marigoldleaf said firmly. "Harepaw, could you run and get her for me?" The tabby apprentice nodded, and ran out of the den to find Rainbowkit's new mother. Marigoldleaf turned back to the kit. "What is your name, dear?"

Rainbowkit blinked, as though she had not been expecting that question. "Me? I'm Rainbowkit."

**A/N Oh my gods, you people are amazing. I've gotten so many reviews already, its unbelievable! So, to celebrate, here's Chapter 1. I honestly wasn't really expecting this to go anywhere, but so far its more popular than my main story, Mystery! (Check that out, btw.) You guys are amazing, doughnuts for everyone! (o) (o) (o) Thanks for being awesome! **

**~avolowolf11CC**


	4. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Rainbowkit was growing to love her new family. Thought she still missed Widewings with a passion, Thrushflower, Grasskit and Kestrelkit were slowly filling the void she had left in Rainbowkit's heart. She managed to keep up her pale ginger tabby illusion at all times, even in sleep, although sometimes her eyes flashed neon yellow, but no one had said anything about it to her.

Today was another lazy day, most of her three moons here had been so far. She almost missed the constant action of tracking down the Clans with Widewings, but there was nothing she could do about that. She was currently playing in a game of mossball, which was pretty common with the kits. The rolled up moss sailed over her head, and she leaped straight up, hooking it with her long claws. She tossed it over to Kestrelkit before landing neatly and sheathing her claws.

"How come you can jump so high?!" Grasskit yelped, swatting the mossball out of his face.

Rainbowkit shrugged. "I don't know!"

"It's always good to have a talented cat in every Clan!" Goldenstar sang. Rainbowkit was beginning to wonder why they let her be leader. The golden she-cat was completely insane. The only cats who could control her were Marigoldleaf, the medicine cat, and Duskfoot, the deputy. Not that they could really do much either. The leader insisted on calling them "Mari," and "Dusky," to their dismay.

Rainbowkit rolled her eyes. "I'm sure any cat could do that if they really wanted to! You just have to push off real hard!" she explained, demonstrating. The other kits frowned, and jumped exactly like she did, but didn't get anywhere near her height. They took that as a challenge, and kept leaping up, the mossball forgotten. Rainbowkit giggled and started jump with them. She could jump over most of them while they were in the air, which probably wasn't the best tactic for trying to appear normal. Not that Rainbowkit, young as she was, really cared. The adults didn't seem to think anything was up.

"Mama," Kestrelkit said suddenly. "When do we get to be apprentices? I wanna learn to jump like Rainbowkit!" she begged.  
>"Two more moons, silly," Thrushflower smiled, batting her kit on the head. "Then you can learn all you want."<p>

Kestrelkit grinned, then leapt onto her brother's back. "You're the ShadowClan warrior!" she called. Grasskit giggled and shouldered her off. "I sure am!" he mewed. "I'm gonna conquer all of ThunderClan!" He squealed as Rainbowkit knocked him over. "No one can beat the almighty ThunderClan!" she cawed, shoving him into the dirt. The gray squawked, trying to get his ridiculously strong adopted sister off his back. At last, he stopped squirming. Rainbowkit smirked. "That's what I thought!" she said smartly, stepping off him. All at once, her lunged back to his feet and pounced on her back, laughing maniacally.

Rainbowkit didn't fall. She kept standing, Grasskit balanced on her back and Kestrelkit rolling in the dirt, letting out peals of laughter. Rainbowkit started parading around with Grasskit, both of them laughing. She only started to regret it when she passed Goldenstar, who immediately started fawning over her "lovely little favorite warrior," which would make any cat feel a little awkward.

"Rainbowkit, let Grasskit down and come over here!" Thrushflower called.

Grasskit rolled off her back with a little squeal, and the two kits, tripping over each other's feet, scampered over to their mother.

"Alright, honeys, it's time for bed," Thrushflower ordered, ushering her kits into the nursery.

**Well. This chapter was terrible. Pure, useless filler. Rainbowkit doesn't realize that most 4 moon old cats can't jump three feet in the air. Oh well, she'll learn. Probably. Next chapter will be the apprentice ceremony! Yay! K bye. **


	5. Chapter 3

**Here. A chapter. **

Chapter 3

"Thrushflower! Let me go!" Rainbowkit squealed.

Thrushflower smiled. "Absolutely not. There is no way I'm allowing you to be apprenticed when your fur looks like that!" She grabbed the struggling kit by the scruff and pulled her in.

Rainbowkit's adopted siblings, Grasskit and Kestrelkit, stood to the side, already neatly groomed and wearing twin smug expressions as they watched their adopted sister being attacked.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" Goldenstar's high pitched voice rang out through the hollow. Kestrelkit squealed excitedly.

"This is it!" Grasskit shouted, tackling Rainbowkit into the dust and ruining Thrushflower's hard work. The queen sighed. Kits were difficult.

The three friends raced out if the nursery and stood in front of the Highledge.

Goldenstar stood regally above them, at the top of a little tumble of rocks called the Highledge. Behind her was the leader's den, a crack in the rock that opened into a cozy little den.

Cats began to pour out of the dens, sitting in little clusters and groups as they waited for Goldenstar to speak and flashing the three kits knowing looks.

"I've gathered you here to celebrate an important moment in every warrior's life." Goldenstar looked bored as she recited the old words, used by every Clan leader since the time of Thunderstar himself.

"Ah, yes. Rainbowkit, step forward." Rainbowkit beamed at her friends and trotted forward.

"Rainbowkit, from this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Rainbowpaw. Your mentor will be Spottedheart." Spottedheart grinned and padded forward, looking pleased.

"Spottedheart, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You had received excellent training from my dear Dusky here," Duskfoot looked completely mortified at the nickname being used in such an important ceremony, "and you have shown yourself to be tough and determined. You will be the mentor of Rainbowpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to her." Goldenstar bobbed her her head, and Spottedheart turned her speckled head to touch noses with the sandy-furred apprentice. Rainbowpaw did so.

Goldenstar sighed. Rainbowpaw was pretty sure she heard the leader mutter, "My, there's a lot of you this time around..."

"Grasskit!" He flashed Rainbowpaw a nervous smile as he padded forward.

"From this day on, you will be known as Grasspaw, your mentor will be Creektail, Creektail, your mentor was Thrushflower, you are proud and loyal, pass on all you know to him, blah blah blah." Goldenstar waved her tail, her eyes wandering, following the path of a white moth. Creektail snorted, but actually looked impressed for some odd reason.

A gentle laugh came from behind her. Rainbowpaw looked around to see Spottedheart looking amused. "That's more of the ceremony than she usually says." Rainbowpaw grinned too and shook her head, thinking of all the weird things the insane things the ThunderClan leader had done in Rainbowpaw's time here.

Grasspaw and Creektail stood to the side as Kestrelkit bounded forward without being asked. Goldenstar didn't seem to care. In fact, she seemed to have forgotten what she was doing entirely. Duskfoot coughed impatiently. "Goldenstar. Apprentice ceremony. Go on. One more time." Goldenstar blinked, looking surprised. "Right, that. Uh... Kestrelkit, you're Kestrelpaw, your mentor's Hareleap, uh... Her mentor was uh... Ss... Snowfang... Empathetic and uh... Ff... Fearless...? You do your thing now."

Rainbowpaw was having trouble not dissolving into fits of laughter. Goldenstar had lifted a paw and was studying her claws, one at a time. "Rainbowpaw! Grasspaw! Kestrelpaw!" Goldenstar jumped as the Clan began calling out the names.

"Great StarClan, Goldenstar! Get a grip!" Duskfoot called from below the Highledge. Goldenstar snorted. "I have more of a grip than you ever will, Dusky."

Rainbowpaw looked at her mentor. "So, what are we gonna do?" she asked, bouncing up and down.

"I was thinking of showing you the territory, what do you think?"

Rainbowpaw grinned and nodded. "Sounds great! Can Grasspaw and Kestrelpaw come too?"

"Of course!" Creektail said, coming to stand beside Spottedheart, Hareleap following him. Their new apprentices came up behind them.

Hareleap lead the way out of camp.

They made their way through the undergrowth, heading toward the lake.

Hareleap suddenly stopped, frowning. "I smell fox. Not too stale, either."

Creektail looked concerned. "Which direction?"

"That way." Hareleap pointed with her tail.

"Well alright, apprentices! Looks like this little tour just turned into a tracking lesson!" The siblings grinned at each other, excited.

"Now, let's go in the direction that Hareleap said." They nodded, and began walking.

The apprentices lead the way, sniffing the air. As they tracked the fox, a new scent crept into the mix. Blood.

The warriors began to look more than a little worried. They sped up, still following the three apprentices.

At last, the fox and blood mix lead them to a little clearing among the trees.

In the center lay a brown tabby she-cat in a spreading pool of red, bearing wings and a necklace of blood.

Widewings.

**The plot thickens. **

**Hey, guys, I posted a question on my profile, but since no one actually looks at profiles, I'm gonna ask it again here: I know that my updates with Mystery and Winged are already sporadic, but I have these four epic, perfect, beautiful story ideas. So here's the choice: Less stories, more updates, or more stories, less updates. **

**Post your opinion in a review! Happy New Year! In like... Lots of days. Yay! **


	6. Chapter 4

**Hi. I know how much I suck. Words cannot express how sorry I am. Here, have this chapter as a forgiveness present. Love you guys, thanks so much for all the reviews and everything, you're all great!**

**Chapter 4**

A ragged scream tore itself from Rainbowpaw's throat. She stood stock-still, staring at the mother she had never expected to see again.

"Rainbowpaw, are you alright?" Spottedheart frowned.

Rainbowpaw didn't reply. She staggered forward and collapsed at her mother's side, breathing shallowly. "Momma?"

The other cats' eyes widened as Rainbowpaw's fur began to flash different colours and she dragged the bloody body towards herself, staining her own fur.

Rainbowpaw gasped as Widewings' eyes fluttered open. "Momma?"

Widewings smiled painfully. "Hi, baby."

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Rainbowpaw stammered, staring into her mother's eyes.

"I...came to find...you." Widewings broke into a fit of coughing, spraying little droplets of blood everywhere. "Did you get into the Clan?" she rasped.

Rainbowpaw smiled, ignoring the tears pooling in her now neon-yellow eyes. "I'm Rainbowpaw now, Mommy."

Widewings nodded, pleased. "I knew you could do it... I love...you." Her eyes closed.

"Momma?! Widewings! MOMMY!" Rainbowpaw shrieked. Widewings didn't reply.

Rainbowpaw allowed the disguise to slip away completely, unsheathed her horns and talons, and howled to the sky.

"Rainbowpaw!" Grasspaw gasped disbelievingly. Rainbowpaw ignored him and leapt straight up into the air, snapping out her multicolored wings and swooping upward, and, faster than the other cat's eyes could follow, disappeared into the clouds.

"Great StarClan..." Hareleap breathed.

"Unbelievable." Kestrelpaw gasped. "This whole time..."

**Rainbowpaw:**

Bleeding paws hurt. Not that Rainbowpaw could really feel the pain. She felt completely numb. She was sitting on a tree branch, high in the branches of the Great Oak on the Gathering island, scoring deep marks into the bark with her long claws.

She didn't even know how long she'd been here, but her claws and pads were scraped raw. She felt her eyes flashing different colours, but at her height in the tree, it didn't really matter. Nothing mattered anymore. Widewings was dead.

"Rainbowpaw!" a voice called. She jumped, and looked disbelievingly down at Grasspaw. "How in the name of StarClan did you find me?" she exclaimed hoarsely.

"I know you," he replied. "Come down."

Rainbowpaw sniffed. She uncurled her lion tail from the branch and began leaping down from branch to branch, leaving small spots of blood from her ragged paws.

When she finally reached the lowest branch, she fluttered down the rest of the way, keeping her wings close. She landed lightly in front of Grasspaw, who was staring at her with wide eyes.

"Can you really..." She nodded slowly, and willed her fur to return to the sandy tabby it had been for the past five moons. She bowed her head.

"I'm sorry... All those moons, I should have told you..."

Grasspaw smiled. "Rainbowpaw, you're beautiful."

She stared at him in complete disbelief. "Wha... I am?"

The gray tom nodded. "I see why you're called Rainbowpaw now... Did I see horns earlier?"

"Yeah... They kind of work like claws. I can sheathe and unsheathe them. I suppose they're good for fighting." She showed him the horns.

Grasspaw smiled again. "Are you ready to come back to camp? I think you need those paws treated."

Rainbowpaw shook her head. "I don't think so. But... Could you... Uh... Could you stay?"

Grasspaw padded over to her. "Sure."

Rainbowpaw laid down and put her head on her paws. She felt Grasspaw lay down next to her, and the strangest shiver ran through her. She'd never felt it before.

"How did you know that cat?" he asked after a long moment of silence.

"She...she was my mother."

Grasspaw blinked. "Oh, Rainbowpaw, I'm so sorry. Do you um...want to uh...to talk about it or..."

Rainbowpaw smiled sadly. "No, you don't need to listen to me whine about whatever. I just...need some time, I think. I never thought I'd see her again."

Grasspaw nodded. "How does your whole...colours thing work? Like, can you, I don't know...shapeshift?"

"Well... This form does have kind of weird bits, like, out of shape I guess, but the thing only really changes my colours and really small things."

"Cool. So...your mom had wings too?" Rainbowpaw bobbed her head.

"She...was going to join the Clan too, but at the last moment she...she told me that since she couldn't disguise herself like I could, she couldn't go with me... And then she just left. She just left me behind, and I was so _sad _it's just... I don't..." She felt hot tears slip down her cheeks, and buried her face in her paws.

Grasspaw's tail rested on her shoulders. Rainbowpaw sniffed, then buried her face in Grasspaw's side. He stiffened, then slowly relaxed, resting his head on hers.

"Oh, StarClan, what are we going to tell the Clan? There's no way we could get away with keeping it a secret after the patrol saw... I'm gonna get kicked out...and-and," Grasspaw slapped his tail over her mouth.

"Rainbowpaw, the Clan loves you! You're kind to everybody, you're funny, you're understanding, you're really, really prett-" he coughed and stopped talking, looking terribly flustered. "I...um."

Rainbowpaw looked into his wide grassy green eyes and smiled a tiny bit. "Do you really think so?"

Grasspaw nodded firmly. Then he stared at his paws and cleared his throat. "Uh...yeah."

Rainbowpaw sighed and leaned her purple-striped head against his shoulder. "Thank you, Grasspaw."

**A/N: Welp, I did not intend to have any romance in this story. They're six moons old. But thats okay, right? As long as I'm ok with it. **

**Bu-bye! **

**~avolowolf**


	7. Chapter 5

**Wow, I just realized I haven't said a disclaimer for this entire story! I don't own Warriors! Erin Hunters do. Good for them. **

**Chapitre Cinq**

(Lol I regret nothing)

Rainbowpaw was ready for anything. Exile, ridicule, even immediate execution.

Of course, this meant that she was not at all prepared for what Goldenstar did. Such was the way of the mentally unstable she-cat.

Rainbowpaw and Grasspaw stood outside the entrance to the ThunderClan camp. The latter actually looked rather excited. The former, however, looked so nervous she might throw up. Rainbowpaw felt like a million tiny parasitic worms were eating her from the inside out. Her sandy fur was bristling with terror.

She turned her disguised head toward Grasspaw, worry gleaming like twin suns from her deep amber eyes. "Are you sure this is a good idea? Because I could always just fly away, I don't—"

"Of course it's a good idea, mousebrain! This is your home now!" Grasspaw interrupted firmly.

Rainbowpaw took a deep breath, and nodded slowly. "A-alright."

The two cats began to walk towards the camp entrance, and towards the their unknown.

**Golderstar's PoV (whaaaat?)**

The day Rainbowpaw was apprenticed and then disappeared in quick succession was...not a good day for Goldenstar, to say the least. Her mind was foggier than usual, the missing bits sticking out in sharp painful jabs. Duskfoot hovered over her all day, making sure she didn't do anything dangerous, for herself and for the Clan.

When Hareleap, Creektail, Spottedheart and Kestrelpaw burst through the thorn barrier yowling something about Rainbowpaw not being what she said she was, and running away, Grasspaw following her, the noise confused the golden she-cat and thickened her mind-fog even more.

"Stop!" came Duskfoot's rumbling roar. "Let your leader hear herself think!"

Goldenstar violently shook away the clouds in her head and slowly walked over to the patrol, each pawstep jarring her aching head. "You say that Rainbowpaw ran away?"

Spottedheart nodded, looking slightly ashamed at being told off by Duskfoot.

Goldenstar frowned. The idea of that cute little kit running away for no reason seemed impossible.

"You're right." Marigoldleaf said, padding over from the medicine den. Goldenstar blinked. "Did I say that out loud again?" she sighed wearily. Her head throbbed, throwing her mind into back into it's chaotic state.

"Why did she run?" asked Duskfoot, taking control of the situation yet again. Goldenstar smiled faintly. The Clan would be driven into the ground without him. Of course, to all the other cats, it just looked like the poor leader was randomly smiling in the middle of a grave situation, as usual.

Spottedheart took a deep breath. Obviously it was a bit of a long story. "We were touring the territory with the new apprentices, and Hareleap scented fox, so we decided to turn it into a tracking lesson. They tracked the scent for a while, and then it started to smell like blood. It led us to this dying cat, and she had _wings, _Duskfoot. _Wings._" The cat's eyes widened.

"Wings? That's not so preposterous. I see cats with wings all the time!" Goldenstar exclaimed, her mind having cleared enough to let her speak.

"Goldenstar," Marigoldleaf soothed. "You imagined them. They weren't real."

Goldenstar huffed angrily. "I heard a voice, too!" She nodded fiercely, approving of her own statement. "It said something like 'accept the Winged one,' not that I have any idea what that means..."

"What?" Marigoldleaf snapped, looking horrified. "Why didn't you mention that earlier?! That wasn't a hallucination, that was a vision from StarClan!"

"I'm special! I knew it!" Goldenstar yowled cheerfully, drowning out any cries of shock from her Clan. "Special! Special! I'm special and you're not!" **(Sing it like na-na-na-boo-boo lol) **

"Goldenstar, please calm down! This is serious!" Duskfoot snarled, exasperated. Goldenstar smiled warmly. "Of course, Dusky. Anything for you." She sat elegantly and surveyed the Clan serenely.

Someone coughed. "The story?"

Spottedheart jumped, looking apologetic. "Right, so, Rainbowpaw started screaming the second she saw this cat, and she went over to her, and her fur started changing colours! And then she had wings, too! And horns, and this really weird tail! And then I guess the cat died, and Rainbowpaw said she was her mom, and then, so fast I could barely follow, she just flew away!"

Goldenstar gasped. "Can you describe her with wings and stuff?"

Spottedheart nodded. "She had orangey fur with purple tabby stripes, and a couple of blue and green markings. She had these really, really bright yellow eyes, one green paw, and a thin tail with a little tuft on the end, like...like a lion's I guess. And her claws were super long, like, really long. She had these horns on her forehead, which looked really sharp, and these huge wings, and every feather was a different colour of the rainbow. She was...enchanting, beautiful even. I don't even know..."

The whole time Spottedheart was talking, Goldenstar was looking more and more strange, her cheeks and eyes bulging like she was holding her breath, and she drew her paws up to her chest, unsheathing her claws and delicately placing them on her chin. Duskfoot sent her a slightly concerned look.

As Spottedheart finished her description, Goldenstar, unable to contain herself any longer, burst out, "OH MY STARCLAN SHE SOUNDS SO ADORABLE I MIGHT JUST DIE! EEEEEEEEE!"

Duskfoot groaned.

Marigoldleaf sighed.

"Thank you for that, Goldenstar. Now, I want Snowfang, Hareleap, Kestrelpaw, and Lionclaw to search toward WindClan territory. Volewhisker, Birdgleam, and myself will head the ShadowClan's border. Follow any fresh trace of scent of either of them. Those apprentices are barely more than kits, so we have to get them back to camp as soon as possible. Let's go!"

The cats raced out of camp determinedly, while Goldenstar headed into her den to rest for a moment. Her head was pounding, and she slipped a little on the rocky slope that led up to the Highledge. She immediately felt Mari's strong shoulder under hers, helping her fumbling paws up the slope. They reached the top (miraculously. Goldenstar had fallen off once...) and the leader stepped quickly into her den. "Thank you, Mari dear. I'm quite fine now."

Marigoldleaf sighed. "I'm worried about you, sister. How's your head? Is it showing any signs of...clearing?"

Goldenstar shook her head sadly. "Sometimes it feels a bit better, and I can actually think, but then I jar it or something and it's like clouds and rain and sunshine hide everything important. I can't think anymore, Mari. I thought it would get better with time, but it seems to have gotten worse."

Marigoldleaf gritted her teeth. "That fox-hearted ShadowClan tom deserved worse than what he got. He did this to you, and now your mind's all messed up, it's like you're not even you anymore..."

Goldenstar smiled comfortingly. "It's really ok. I kind of miss Dusky though. He's really just my caretaker now, instead of my mate."

"I think he still loves you, under all that. He's a good cat, not one to forget love so easily. Don't worry, just get some rest. I'll wake you when they come back."

**A/N: Well, here we get a bit of insight on how Goldenstar's insanity affects her! She actually quite sad. I'm planning on doing a sort of Super Edition-ty thing for both Goldenstar and Dawnstar (from Mystery) later to explain how they got that way! And look, I updated on Saturday, just like I promised!**

**Don't forget to _LEAVE A REVIEW! _Your reviews are what I feed on. They're like food for the ravenous beast that is creativity. Thanks for reading, leave a review, eat some cake, favourite and follow, leave a review leave a review leave a review. Tanks!**

**~avolowolf**


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